Blog Tour (Review): The Invasion of the Tearling by Erika Johansen @TLCBookTours @harperbooks

In this riveting sequel to the national bestseller The Queen of the Tearling, the evil kingdom of Mortmesne invades the Tearling, with dire consequences for Queen Kelsea and her realm.

With each passing day, Kelsea Glynn is growing into her new responsibilities as Queen of the Tearling. By stopping the shipments of slaves to the neighboring kingdom of Mortmesne, Kelsea has crossed the brutal Red Queen, who derives her power from dark magic and who is sending her fearsome army into the Tearling to take what she claims is hers. And nothing can stop the invasion.

But as the Mort army draws ever closer, Kelsea develops a mysterious connection to a time before the Crossing. She finds herself relying on a strange and possibly dangerous ally: a woman named Lily, fighting for her life in a world where being female can feel like a crime. Soon Kelsea herself begins to change; she does not recognize either her reflection in the mirror or the extraordinary power she now commands. The fate of the Tearling—and that of Kelsea's own soul—may rest with Lily and her story, but Queen Kelsea is running out of time.

In this second volume of the compelling trilogy begun with her bestselling The Queen of the Tearling, Erika Johansen brings back favorite characters and introduces unforgettable new players, adding exciting layers to her multidimensional tale of magic, mystery, and a fierce young heroine.

As you can see, Amber and I are pretty big fans of this series, and I've personally been following it since it sold, and Emma Watson jumped on board to be in the movie. The Queen of the Tearling was a really great debut novel, and I was excited to get on the blog tour for The Invasion of the Tearling, too. The Invasion of the Tearling picks up where the first book left off and takes the story to a much deeper level.

The problem with a lot of middle books in a trilogy is they are not much more than a bridge between the first two, and not a lot happens. That's not the case with The Invasion of the Tearling because there is a great deal of growth - for better and for worse - for Kelsea. She is facing the Mort invasion, having flashbacks to a pre-Crossing woman's life, and dealing with supernatural powers that she does not understand, her own included. She does not understand why she's suddenly losing weight and her face is changing, becoming more attractive. I think the way this aspect of the novel plays out was really successful in making me sympathetic to Kelsea living in her mother's shadow, in both her reign and beauty. Kelsea also learns a thing or two about cruelty, not unlike the Red Queen.

Speaking of the Red Queen, some light is definitely shined on her, making her more sympathetic, too. There is a pretty big reveal about her past, but I had already seen that coming a mile away. (That much hatred has to be something personal, you know?) It was interested to see her vulnerabilities, as well as her affection for Beryll.

The flashbacks that Kelsea had are focused on a lady named Lily Mayhew. Though I was investing in Kelsea and the plight of the Tearling, I found myself just as attached to Lily and her struggles. In The Queen of the Tearling, I wanted to know a lot more about the Crossing, and once I was taken back to the time leading up to it, I almost didn't want to go back to the "present".

Overall, The Invasion of the Tearling is a stronger book than its predecessor, and I cannot wait to get my hands on book three. If you haven't started reading this series already, you're doing yourself a serious disservice. If you've read The Invasion of the Tearling, please hit me up for spoilery discussions. There is much that I would love to discuss.

Erika Johansen grew up and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She went to Swarthmore College, earned an MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and eventually became an attorney, but she never stopped writing.

To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received a copy of the novel from the publisher through TLC Book Tours in exchange for an unbiased review. It has in no way affected the outcome. All expressed opinions are awesome, honest, and courtesy of me.